


One Woman

by westwingfanfictioncentral_archivist



Category: The West Wing
Genre: F/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2003-01-17
Updated: 2003-01-17
Packaged: 2019-05-15 13:12:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,812
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14791148
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/westwingfanfictioncentral_archivist/pseuds/westwingfanfictioncentral_archivist
Summary: Sequel to "The Two Women In My Life". Josh finally makes a decision.





	One Woman

**Author's Note:**

> A copy of this work was once archived at National Library, a part of the [ West Wing Fanfiction Central](https://fanlore.org/wiki/West_Wing_Fanfiction_Central), a West Wing fanfiction archive. More information about the Open Doors approved archive move can be found in the [announcement post](http://archiveofourown.org/admin_posts/8325).

**One Woman**

**by:** Columbia 

**Disclaimer:** Yeah, I can barely afford a loaf of bread, never mind the rights to West Wing. So..you know, don’t sue.  
**Category:** Josh/Donna  
**Rating:** CHILD  
**Spoilers:** The Women of Qumar on. Also minor ones for ‘Bartlet’s Third State of the Union’ and ‘Two Cathedrals’. Can ya spot ‘em? Can ya?  
**Summary:** Sequel to ‘The Two Women In My Life’. Josh finally makes a decision.  
**Author's Note:** You really have to have read ‘The Two Women In My Life’ for this to make sense. So if you havn’t, go do it now! If you have, read on…Thanks to Sharon who made me get up off my ass and write this, and thank you also for the impromptu beta which was very helpful given the state of my spelling! J  
**Feedback:** Helps me get through the day

“Josh!”

“You promised!”

“Josh-“

“You promised you’d call!”

“I know, but I didn’t think that-“

“Donna!”

She looked up at him sulkily, feeling like she was in trouble with a teacher.

 “Josh, come on, you’re treating me like a kid here!”

“Well-“

“Oh no. Please don’t say “well, you’re acting like one” because then I really need to go call my father and tell him that he’s got a clone out here!”

He sighed and sat down, staring at his hands. “I’m sorry.”

Donna sighed too and moved closer to him. “I got a cab, Josh, I was only waiting for twenty minutes, at the most.”

“You promised you would call.”

“I would have, but you were at the Kennedy Center!”

He looked at her triumphantly. “And what did I say? Last week, what did I say to you?”

“Josh…”

“What did I say?”

“That it didn’t matter what you were doing,” Donna mumbled.

“I didn’t hear that.”

“Oh, come on! This is getting ridiculous, I’m going home.”

They had been in his office for an hour, ever since Josh found out that Donna had waited outside a bar the previous night for twenty minutes waiting for a cab, thus breaking her promise to call him. 

Thus sending Josh into some weird, over-protective ranting.

Thus irritating Donna.

Thus making her think lustfully of a hot bath and her two faithful friends, Ben and Jerry.

To her surprise Josh didn’t argue with her, even though it was only nine o’clock on a Wednesday. “Yeah okay.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah” he said somberly.

Donna ignored the parts of her screaming to stay, and resolutely stepped towards the door. By the time she got there however, the part of her that cared (probably in an inappropriate way) for her boss had won her internal battle, and she turned back around. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah,” he replied, surprised at her concern.

She started to walk back. “It’s just that…I don’t know, you’ve seemed kinda down recently.”

He marveled at how she could always read him. “I’ve just had some thinking to do, that’s all.”

She sat down in the visitor’s chair, frowning. “What about?”

He thought for a moment, before half-lying “Amy.”

“Oh. You’re not marrying her or anything, right?”

“No,” he replied, trying not to laugh at the absurdity of the question.

“Oh,” she smiled. “Good.”

“Why?”

“I’m sorry?”

“Why is that good?”

Whoops, thought Donna.

 “Um…I just don’t really think she’s right for you.”

Josh smiled at this faint glimmer of hope. “Well, that’s what I’m thinking about.”

“Ah. Come to any conclusions yet?”

“I…I think I might be getting there.”

“Good. Well, I’ll leave you to it.”

“’Kay. See you tomorrow.”

“See you.”

She was gone, and Josh noticed the faint pang of hurt that pulled at his heart when that happened.

That never happened with Amy. 

With Amy, he was almost relieved when she walked out the door.

 Josh smiled, put his hands in his pockets and looked away, a trick learnt from the legendary President Bartlet.

He too had made a decision.

 

 

That night, Donna was preparing to go for that hot bath she had been dreaming of all day. Her hand was just on the tap when a knock at the door stopped her in her tracks. She sighed, and gathered her bath robe around her.

 

Josh, outside was more nervous than he’d ever been in his life. All his careful decision making process was completely in vain if Donna didn’t agree with him anyway.

He heard her footsteps approach the door, and his first instinct was to haul ass and flee back down the stairs it had already taken him the best part of forty-five minutes to climb. He took a deep breath and ordered his feet to stay were they were as the door slowly opened. 

The sight of Donna looking rather annoyed, in a bathrobe, did nothing to ease his discomfort.

She looked surprised to see him. “Hi!”

“Hi…oh. You’re... you’re busy, I can come back.”

“No, it’s okay, come in.”

“No, I…”

“Seriously, come in.”

“Are you sure, cos I can just…”

“Josh, what the hell is wrong with you?!”

Her question took him by surprise. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You’re acting like…like Sam! Usually, you’d have barged your way in right now, regardless if I was busy or not!”

He thought about it and decided she was right.

“Yeah. I can barge” he assured her. “I can barge.”

He barged.

Donna was beginning to wonder if there was something seriously wrong with him. His face was flushed, and he constantly dragged his hands over it as if trying to magic himself someplace else. She watched, bemused, as he sat down on the sofa, thought better of it, stood up again, turned 360 degrees, and sat back down.

“Are you okay?”

“Fine.”

“Okay. You want a drink or something. Beer?”

“Yeah, yeah, beer would be good.”

She wandered into the kitchen and pulled a beer out of the fridge.

“So did you make a decision?” she called.

“Huh?” said Josh, completely distracted and eyeing the door.

She wandered back into the living room with two bottles of beer. “Did you make a decision?”

“About what?”

“About Amy.”

“Oh! Yeah, yeah I did.”

She looked at him searchingly. Josh returned the look.

“Well? What did you decide?”

“That’s…” Josh took a deep breath.

“Oh!” Donna interrupted. “That’s…none of my business. Sorry.”

“No, that’s not what…I was gonna say, that’s what I came to talk to you about.”

“Oh. Okay.” Donna sat next to him.

Josh let out a breath, wondering why it was possible for his palms to be so sweaty and his throat so dry at the same time. Maybe it was some sort of hormonal imbalance –

“Josh!” Donna exclaimed, bringing him out of his thoughts.

“Yes! Sorry, I…”

“Are you all right?”

“Yes…no.”

Her brow creased with concern.

“What’s wrong?”

He took another deep breath. “You.”

Her eyes widened. “Did I do something wrong?”

“No, of course not, you didn’t do anything.” He rubbed his eyes and laughed nervously. “I’m sorry, I’m not doing well at this.”

“What’s going on, Josh?”

“I’m splitting up with Amy.”

“Okay.”

“I’ve come to see you. You’re what’s wrong with me?” he prompted, trying to get out of saying it himself.

She shook her head uncomprehendingly. 

He sighed in frustration. “Can you really not see where I’m heading with this?”

A flash of realization crossed her eyes, but she shook her head. “I don’t know…” she said cautiously.

“Donna, I-” He stared down at his hands. “I think I’m falling in love with you.”

She gasped and her eyes became like saucers.

“Actually, that was an understatement. I am falling in love with you.” He searched her face for a reaction.

“Josh, I…”

“Actually,” he interrupted, figuring that it was better to get all of the bombshells out at once. “That was an understatement too. I am in love with you. I love you.”

She stared past him in complete shock for so long that Josh actually looked behind him, thinking there was someone there.

“Donna?”

Suddenly, she stood up and rushed to the phone, grabbing it off the hook and dialing frantically.

Josh stood up. “D0nna? What are you doing?”

She ignored him, listening to the ring on the other end.

“Listen, if you’re calling the police or something, let me tell you, there’s no need…”

“Leo McGarry, please...” Donna said into the phone.

“Donna!” Josh shrieked.

“Josh, your voice-”

“-Just went really high, I know, Donna what the hell are you doing?”

“Leo? It’s Donna.”

Josh rushed over to try to wrestle the phone from her grip, but she snatched it away.

“Donna!”

She covered the mouthpiece with her hand. “Josh, calm down, it’s okay. Do you trust me?”

“Donna – “

“Do you trust me?”

“Not right now!”

“Josh.”

“Yes, I trust you, can you just give me the phone?”

“It’s okay.” She returned to the phone. “Sorry Leo. I’m here. It happened.”

In his office, Leo heard a muffled “Donna!” followed by a “Shhhh!”

“He told you?”

“Yeah. I didn’t believe you, I didn’t think…”

“I know you didn’t.”

“You said to me, you said come and find me when it happens…how did you know?”

“Donna, come on. You’d have to be an idiot not to realize how he felt about you. No offence” he added dryly.

“None taken. Why…why did I have to tell you?”

“Timing. I love you both, but if we’re just off the back of a sex scandal, I’m sorry, it’s just not gonna happen for you.”

“We’re not just off the back of a sex scandal.”

“No we’re not.”

“But we are just off the back of MS, a congressional censure…”

“Yeah.”

“Can this happen?”

Leo considered, ignoring cries of “Leo, you can discuss politics with me, not Donna!” coming from the background of the phone call.

“The MS is separate from this. So is the censure. And so is any other extra-curricular nonsense we’ve got going on just now.”

“You mean…”

“It can happen Donna.”

She smiled. “Leo…how did you know that I felt the same way” she said, staring into Josh’s eyes. He smiled back.

“Because I have eyes.”

“I love him,” she said. 

Josh smiled wider.

Leo cleared his throat. “Okay. I’m beginning to sense that this conversation isn’t for me anymore. I’ll see you two tomorrow.”

Josh took the phone, freeing Donna’s hands to snake around his neck. “See you, Leo.” He said, before hanging up. He smiled at the woman in front of him. “You had a plan, the both of you, you were hatching a plan against me.”

“It wasn’t against you. It was for our benefit. You just have to trust Leo on these things.”

“Well, I know that now. But at the time, I think it would have been better to inform me-”

“Shut up and kiss me already.”

“Okay.”


End file.
